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Tours of Streatham Hill Theatre 16 October 2025

The Streatham Festival team approached the current owners Ruach City Church through the auspices of local MP Steve Reed’s office to ask for access to the theatre for this year’s (2025) Streatham Festival. There was the possibility for a concert, a comedy event and guided tours.

After a period of negotiations regarding content, costs and arrangements, only the tour is able to go ahead. Organised by our local open-access, volunteer-run, non-profit Streatham Theatre Company, there will be two tours on Thursday 16th October. Tours are free, but tickets are required from STC as numbers are limited.

Find out more at STC’s website.

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Latest from Lambeth on Streatham Space Project

Lambeth have posted the following item in their September Voluntary and Community Sector news email. You may wish to sign up for their SSP news!

Seeking a new operator for Streatham Space Project

Streatham Space Project

As many of you know, Streatham Space Project closed its doors early this year. We are working closely with the landlord, London Square, to secure a new operator. Our priority is to bring the venue back to life for the benefit of the community.

London Square will soon go live with more information about this opportunity, including details of an upcoming Open House and community engagement event.  If you’d like to be kept updated about this project, and would be interested in attending any upcoming events, please email culture@lambeth.gov.uk to be added to the Streatham Space Project mailing list and someone will be in touch with more information as soon as it becomes available. 

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RE:Purpose capital grants programme for creative sector

With support of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), Lambeth Council is launching round two of RE:Purpose, a small capital grants programme for creative industries businesses and cultural organisations based in or operating in the borough of Lambeth.

RE:Purpose empowers businesses and organisations to transform underutilised spaces into vibrant cultural hubs, improving access and fostering sustainable, purpose-driven business models. In this round, they will also invite applications for improvements that improve sustainability and climate resilience, and that support the night-time economy. You can apply for up to £25,000.

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Latest on planning application for Streatham Hill Theatre

From The Friends of Streatham Hill Theatre:

The deadline of 30th May for comments on the application has passed and thank you if you have sent in your objections. There are delays between you sending your comments and them appearing on the Lambeth planning portal as they have to be checked by Lambeth officers and personal data removed. The case officer only works Tues-Thurs and there has been a high volume of comments. If you are still concerned, you can email the objections to planning@lambeth.gov.uk, giving the reference and your name/address, tell them when you submitted and ask for confirmation. More info on our campaign page here.

But if you haven’t sent in your comment it’s still worth a try! There have been several issues with the Lambeth Planning Portal along the way so hopefully they will look kindly on “late” comments.

We now have to wait for Lambeth officers to assess the application, taking into account the comments for and against, and make a recommendation. We then expect the application to go to Lambeth councillors on the Planning Committee for a decision. Looking at planned committee dates, this may take a few months!

There’s more on our campaign page.

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Discussions with Lambeth and Theatres Trust about SSP

We have spoken with Lambeth’s Cabinet Member for Stronger Communities, Councillor Donatus Anyanwu, and his Culture team. They are keen to get the Streatham Space Project up and running again with a new operator. They will be talking with the developer of the London Square site, and with Theatres Trust.

We have offered input and advice from Streatham’s skilled and experienced arts practitioners in SAC, to help with the selection process, and to engage with the operator(s). It would make sense to appoint an operator with a track record in the necessary capabilities to take on the space.

It is important that any new operator is able to meet the needs of local audiences and commercial users, as well as those of community groups wanting to make use of the space for their activities (at reasonable rates). And, of course, the space needs to be financially sustainable. SAC can help here too!

Theatres Trust can also provide support and advice to Lambeth and operators, and are happy to help SAC in our campaign too.

We have asked Lambeth to ensure that the premises and its equipment are looked after during the period of closure, to ensure they do not deteriorate and nothing is removed by anyone. Lambeth have told us that the developer is to carry out some remedial works while the space is closed. There is also an acoustic issue to be resolved involving leakage of bass noise from the premises.

We have also asked that “meanwhile use” of the premises should be made available, while an operator is found. For example, to host Streatham Festival events, as well as others. This would help local groups, and help protect the premises and equipment. SAC is happy to facilitate this.

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Final Act for Streatham Hill Theatre?

Could this be the Final Act for Streatham Hill Theatre? Could we lose it permanently? Check out the latest from The Friends of Streatham Hill Theatre and support their campaign here.

Ruach City Church have submitted their application for change of use of Streatham Hill Theatre to a place of worship (ref. 25/01141/FUL at Lambeth Planning. It’s arrived just in time for the bank holiday weekend, with the closure date for comments being 22nd May 2025.

The application notes that it is contrary to the policies of the adopted Lambeth Local Plan 2020-2035 (adopted 2021) in particular Policy ED13: Visitor attractions, leisure, arts and cultural uses which seeks to retain leisure operations within the borough.

We will now kick off our prepared response, and will circulate details of the application, and our case for you to also comment on the application. If you can make our online campaign meeting on May 7th please join us on Zoom.

** Please also pass on this message to your friends and neighbours, your local community groups, on WhatsApp, Facebook/Instagram/Threads/BlueSky/X, and any other social media. Then please watch out for further campaign messages and pass them on too.

Together we can save Streatham Hill Theatre for the wider community – this should not be its Final Act! **

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Public Meeting Coming Soon

We are planning an initial public meeting one evening, somewhere in Streatham.

**Stop press – we had anticipated this to be 8th May but we now have a meeting with Lambeth scheduled for 12th May so have delayed the public meeting until after that.**

The agenda will include an update and discussion around the concerns of the arts community, and in particular the pressing issue of the closure of Streatham Space Project. We hope to have some relevant stakeholders on the panel to assist.

Also on the agenda is formally creating SAC, finding volunteers to help, and determining next steps for SAC and SSP.

Ideally we would like to meet in the Streatham Space Project, but if not we will find an alternative venue.

Please join us if you haven’t already, then watch this space, your email or social media for the meeting details. If you can’t make the meeting, then please share your input by email.

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Our offer of help to Lambeth

We have written to Cllr Donatus Anyanwu, Cabinet Member for Stronger Communities at Lambeth. As part of his role, Councillor Anyanwu “works with cultural sector and community groups to support the thriving arts and cultural communities”.

“Dear Donatus,

“The recent closure of the Streatham Space Project has caused a good deal of concern locally. In response, local people have come together to create Streatham Arts Community (or SAC) to promote and work towards the reopening of this crucial arts space for the benefit of our community.

“As David Harvey and I [Jane Wroe Wright] are both well connected with local groups such as Streatham Theatre Company, The Friends of Streatham Hill Theatre, The Streatham Society, InStreatham BID, Streatham Action, Streatham Choral, Streatham Festival and more, we believe that we are well placed to take a coordinating role in these efforts. It is in this capacity that we are writing to you to offer Streatham Arts Community’s connections and experience to Lambeth Council to enhance the efforts that, no doubt,  you are making towards the same end.

“We share your frustration that Streatham Space Project failed to capture the imagination of patrons, and has proved to be too expensive for local groups to use for their activities. We have over 100 local people who support the reopening of the space and its theatre with a viable and sustainable business model. 

“In the first instance, we would like to meet with whoever is handling this matter in your office so that we can explore how best to support your initiatives. We are also available to meet with any operating companies with whom you are discussing the possibility of running the space.

“Having created the Streatham Arts Community, it is our intention to hold a public meeting on the 8th May to discuss a way forward and to explore what talents and connections we have that might be useful.

“Please take this as an invitation to that meeting. We very much hope that you will wish to send a speaker for the panel. Please let us know if you are agreeable to this, and any suggestions about who else might be a constructive addition to the panel.

“If you can arrange access, it would be ideal to host this within the Streatham Space Project itself; failing that we will advise you of the time and the place for the meeting – please let us know if you can attend and your thoughts for the panel.”